Respond to these rapid questions in our Nobody quiz and we will tell you which Nobody character you are. Play it now.
Nobody, directed by Ilya Naishuller, stars Bob Odenkirk, who plays someone who is more like Liam Neeson’s action heroes in a clever action film that repositions him as someone more like Liam Neeson’s action heroes. In spite of the fact that it appears to be a stretch to imagine one of the brilliant minds behind “Mr. Show” as an action hero, it turns out to be a stroke of genius as Odenkirk’s violent protagonist is grounded with a very special set of skills in a way that other actors would have missed. He’s excellent as a man who has attempted to put his violent past behind him, but movies have taught us for generations that this is a much more difficult task than it appears.
In the opening sequence of “Nobody,” a montage of Hutch Mansell’s mundane daily existence is shown. The same transit card is scanned on a daily basis, and every week, he is just a few seconds late for the trash collection service. Life is a series of routines for him, which has eroded his marriage to Becca (Connie Nielsen), while simultaneously providing a relatively happy home for his children, Blake (Gage Munroe) and Abby (Amy Ryan) (Paisley Cadorath). Michael Ironside plays Hutch’s father-in-law Eddie, who owns a manufacturing company that is dominated by his alpha brother-in-law Charlie (played by Michael Ironside) (Billy MacLellan). Fortunately, writer Derek Kolstad doesn’t spend too much time on Hutch’s ordinary suburban existence, instead throwing viewers right into the action of “Nobody” from the very first scene.
It all starts with a home invasion, during which two low-level criminals rob the Mansells of some spending money and a few trinkets they’ve collected over the years. Although Hutch has the upper hand with his golf club raised in the air, he chooses not to escalate the violence, much to the dismay of his son and disdain of his dude-bro male next door neighbor. When it appears that the intruders may have taken Abby’s kitty-kat bracelet, Hutch snaps into action, tracking them down and retrieving the bracelet.
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“Nobody,” on the other hand, is not really a “Death Wish”-style tale of a regular guy who becomes a vigilante. There are hints that Hutch isn’t your typical suburbanite from the beginning of the series. Even his man cave appears to be set up in a way that suggests a different background than your neighbor, complete with a radio through which he communicates with his brother Harry (RZA), who is currently in hiding. Why? Furthermore, what exactly is the significance of the box of fake IDs and money that Hutch’s father David (Christopher Lloyd) has been keeping hidden? When the bracelet retrieval job goes awry, Hutch is on his way home on the bus when he comes across a group of obnoxious drunks who are harassing a woman who is traveling alone. As a result, he takes it upon himself to protect her, effectively initiating a violent conflict with a Russian crime lord by the name of Yulian (Aleksey Serebryakov).
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This is the kind of action choreography work of art that will have devoted audiences applauding at screenings for years to come. The bus scene that kicks off the real action of “Nobody” is a work of art in and of itself. It’s a clever piece of filmmaking that starts with Hutch throwing himself into a few awkward exchanges with his new enemies and gradually builds in intensity, almost as if this encounter is gradually awakening his skill set one punch at a time, as the film progresses. People will remember this action scene with a smile for a long time, and it will serve as a reminder of the adrenaline rush that a film can experience when an action scene is well-choreographed. It was choreographed by the team behind “John Wick.”
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With the exception of a scene that establishes Yulian as a psychopathic villain that is a little too long, Naishuller is wise enough to capitalize on the momentum created by the bus scene to propel the rest of the story forward. “Nobody” is an incredibly quick film, and the experience feels far less time-consuming than the film’s 92-minute running time. Though it’s possible to argue that the film could have benefited from a bit more prologue to establish Becca and her family as characters rather than simply plot devices, “Nobody” has a tightness to it that’s uncommon in modern films, and it’s reminiscent of the economy of the “John Wick” films, which is one of the trilogy’s greatest assets.
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Then there’s the town of Odenkirk. It was easier to appreciate how much he brings to a role that someone else could have easily sleepwalked through for a paycheck after seeing “Nobody” a second time after the first (this would be a much lesser movie with the current king of the Paycheck Performance, Bruce Willis, for example). In Hutch, Odenkirk successfully sells both sides of the character, making both his current family life and his violent past seem plausible. His performance is intelligent, which should come as no surprise to fans of his work on “Breaking Bad” and “Saul,” but it’s also a wonderfully physical one in the sense that he brings the stunt work and fight choreography to life. The supporting cast is strong, particularly RZA and Lloyd, both of whom know exactly what they want to bring to this project, but this is Odenkirk’s film from beginning to end, and he delivers a performance to remember.
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Surprisingly, for the director of “Hardcore Henry,” Naishuller has a tendency to overdo his stylistic choices every now and then, as evidenced by his use of slo-mo montages set to unusual musical selections. The film also has an alternate cut that feels more intense, though no one ever feels like they’re in danger (at least not in the way that “John Wick” did with his canine companion). Although it takes a while, Naishuller eventually gets it right, providing a talented actor with an unexpected vehicle in which to drive really fast while providing just enough bloodshed for action fans and not too much gore for average audiences. In this day and age, it’s a rare modern action film that makes me hope it will do well enough to warrant a sequel. (I also believe there is potential for a crossover project titled “John Wick vs. Nobody” that would gross approximately a billion dollars worldwide.)
It is possible for “Nobody” to succeed because it places a high value on scene construction and action choreography above all else, abandoning the pretension and overplotting that have become common in the genre in more recent years. There are no groundbreaking innovations here; rather, it presents an extremely enjoyable experience within a familiar framework. After a year in which there were too few action movies due to the cancellation of the blockbuster, “Nobody” provides viewers with an adrenaline rush that almost feels like it’s brand new.
Only available in theaters starting tomorrow, March 26th.
For more personality quizzes check this: In The Heights Quiz.
